Room reflections can be modelled as sources in mirrored rooms

Evidence

To meet the needs of computing and designing acoustics for complex spaces, a number of approximate numerical techniques have been developed. A conceptually simple technique is based on the image source method. Figure 2.24 illustrates a rectangular room with a source and a receiver. According to wave reflection laws, as illustrated in Figures 2.16 and 2.19, the reflections can be modelled as coming from image sources in image rooms. Each reflection in the real room corresponds to penetrating a wall between image rooms. Each path has an attenuation due to the 1/r distance law and damping for each reflection, and the wave will be delayed by the propagation time of the wave from the (image) source to the receiver. — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 301

To meet the needs of computing and designing acoustics for complex spaces, a number of approximate numerical techniques have been developed. A conceptually simple technique is based on the image source method. Figure 2.24 illustrates a rectangular room with a source and a receiver. According to wave reflection laws, as illustrated in Figures 2.16 and 2.19, the reflections can be modelled as coming from image sources in image rooms. Each reflection in the real room corresponds to penetrating a wall between image rooms. Each path has an attenuation due to the 1/r distance law and damping for each reflection, and the wave will be delayed by the propagation time of the wave from the (image) source to the receiver. … If the room is not rectangular, the method can still be used, although the visibility of each image source has to be validated in each case (Kristiansen et al., 1993). — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 301

Categorization

• DEFINE: Explains the image source method concept clearly: reflections modeled as sources in image rooms.
• XREF: Connects to the reader’s work on room acoustics simulation and methods used in audio/VR rendering. — connects to: Reflecting walls are equivalent to mirror-image virtual sound sources — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 515; Room acoustics requires modeling direct sound then early reflections; Treating room walls as mirrors locates where early reflections need absorbing. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2299 (+1 more)
• corroborated: 3 independent passages support this claim — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 301

Broader Connections

• Treating room walls as mirrors locates where early reflections need absorbing. #expands (0.95) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2299
• Room boundaries alter loudspeaker output through reflected image sources #corroborates (0.90)